.22 Malfunction?

[BigMikey76]

I have a Marlin 795 that has the "automatic bolt hold open" feature. It is supposed to stay open after the last shot in the mag. On the last few mags I have put through it, it has not stayed open after the last shot. I was shooting Remmington Golden (not my favorite so far, but they were already paid for, so I figured it doesn't make sense to not use them). There have been no failures to fire, feed, extract or eject. Is the problem more likely in the rifle, or is it possible that the ammo is causing it.

[geetarman]

I am not real familiar with that particular rifle but my experience has been dirt buildup causes some bolt open devices to fail.

The other thing that can cause problems is underpowered ammo.

Have you tried other ammo to see if you still have the problem?

I am betting your problem will go away with a good cleaning.

Geetarman:D

[jmr40]

A good cleaning is a good place to start. Sometimes the problem is with the magazine. It is a notch in the magazine that holds the bolt back on most gun designs I'm aware of. When cleaning, make sure to pay attention to the mags as well as the gun. Try a different magazine if you have more than 1.

[BigMikey76]

I am hoping a cleaning will cure what ails it. It is a brand new rifle, and I have only cleaned it once - right when I bought it, befoe putting any ammo through. I've gone through about 700 rounds in the past 3 or 4 weeks, so I'm sure it's getting a bit dirty by now.

[44 AMP]

Clean it. Its the most likely reason, and the simplest one to fix.

If the bolt isn't locking back on the last round, it means the hold-open isn't doing its job. The reasons for this are

1) Rifle is dirty, and crud is making the hold open stick. Clean and lube correctly.

2) Slightly under powered ammo not blowing back the bolt far enough to engage the hold open. Change ammo (note: dirty rifle can mimic this)

3) Parts are worn/spring is weak. Replace bad parts. (not likely with new rifle)

Most likely, and simplest is that crud has built up and is making the hold open stick (or move too slowly to catch the bolt). This won't be apparent when the rifle is checked by hand, only during firing that last round.

If the hold open is frozen in place, that will be apparent when checked by hand, but based on your description, that's not the problem here.